Day 1 – Depart

Fly through the night to London.

Day 2 – London

Your private bus and driver will escort you on a London City Tour. See Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, the Houses of Parliament, and Big Ben. Also visit glorious Westminster Abbey, site of royal weddings and coronations.

Day 3 – London

Tour Windsor Castle, country residence of the royal family. Your afternoon is free to explore. Perhaps the British Museum, Harrod’s Department Store, or attend a session of the houses of Parliament. Option: Attend a West End theatre performance.

Day 4 – Portsmouth

Depart this morning for a visit to Stonehenge, a prehistoric monument estimated to have been assembled between four and five thousand years ago. Then travel to Portsmouth and board your overnight ferry for France.

Day 5 – Caen

Disembark on the Normandy coast and take a sightseeing tour of the D-Day region. See La Pointe du Hoc and visit a bunker from which Germany artillery fire rained down on Texas Rangers attempting to storm the cliff. Stop at Omaha Beach before your visit of the American Cemetery of Colleville Sur Mer. Your tour will end at Arromanches Museum where you will learn the details of the Landing Operations.

Day 6 – Loire Valley

Head inland to spend the night in the beautiful Loire Valley, known as the “garden of France.” Visit Château de Chambord, one of the most recognizable châteaux in the world because of its very distinctive French Renaissance architecture which blends traditional French medieval forms with classical Renaissance structures and Château Chenonceau, perhaps the most beautiful castles in France. Arrive in the France’s glorious capital city of Paris and begin exploring the City of Lights.

Day 7 – Paris

On your Paris City Tour, see the Arc de Triomphe, the Place de la Concorde, the Tuileries, and drive past haute couture boutiques nestled around the Place de l’Opera. Discover Notre Dame Cathedral with splendid rose windows and snarling gargoyles. This afternoon, tour the Musée du Louvre, the world’s largest museum. Originally constructed in 1200 as a fortress, the Louvre later served as the royal palace for monarchs.

Day 8 – Paris

Journey to the Palace of Versailles, where Louis XIV ruled in dazzling splendor. The Sun King remodeled this former hunting lodge into one of the most impressive buildings in the world. You’re free in the afternoon to explore Paris. Perhaps climb the Eiffel Tower or the magnificent Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysées. Stroll by the Trocadero, Les Invalides, Palais du Luxembourg, the Opera, the Pantheon and the historic Latin Quarter. You may finish your stay by exploring Montmartre, birthplace of modern art, made famous by artists such as Picasso, Renoir, Modigliani, Gauguin and van Gogh. Walk through the artistic, cobblestone streets and see the lovely Basilica Sacre-Coeur, an integral part of the Montmartre landscape. Finish with a glorious farewell dinner.

Day 9 – Depart

Fly home today, with new knowledge and memories of all the history and art that fill the spaces between London and Paris.